More good news from Corey & Mo (continuing a string of recent successes that include getting cast in several short run productions, wedding hairdressing opportunities for Mo, and Corey’s music video gig). They’ve both been cast at Chicago Comedy Company, a short-form improvisional company out in the Chicago ‘burbs in Schaumberg. It looks to be a great opportunity for them – consistent stage time with an established theater (that actually PAYS), and is now under new ownership/management by a veteran Chicago improviser who has worked with i/O and Second City.

Congrats Corey and Mo – keep the good news coming!

Corey and Mo recently got the opportunity to work on a music video with their good friends, Blackpool Lights. Mo did everyone’s hair and makeup, and Corey was the only non-band member to appear in the video. The video is a lot of fun, and the song, called “Empty Tank” is excellent.

Sorry I’ve been so remiss about text updates to the blog lately. I have added lots of pictures – check out the January album in the Photo Gallery. There’s not a lot of big news to report. Jonathan is doing great. He’s still on the “small” end of the growth chart, but he’s healthy and putting on weight as expected. He’s started to try and mimick us when we make faces at him – he sticks his tongue out when Miriam blows raspberries at him (though he doesn’t quite get the “blow” part yet) and will purse his lips like an exaggerated kiss for me.

Mikaela is also doing well. She’s been disappointed by all of the Monday holidays lately, as that means she misses both swimming and dance class at school – her two favorite things. She works really hard at being a good big sister to Jonathan. The other day she insisted on helping to change his diaper.  She got frustrated when his squirming legs made getting the diaper on more difficult than it is to put a diaper on her baby dolls. She said, “Hey, baby, quit movin’ around like that!” She also likes to help give Jonathan his bath – she’s an expert at rubbing the shampoo in his hair without getting any in the baby’s eyes.

It seems Miriam and I are perpetually tired, but that’s to be expected at this point. Miriam is starting to s-l-o-w-l-y transition back to work.  She’s taking care of a few things that can be handled by phone and Email. But it will still be a while before she’s back in the office. I enjoyed getting to spend extra time with the kids, thanks to all of the Federal holidays at the end of December/beginning of January (including the Presidential funeral day). I’m getting back into the regular swing at work myself, though luckily it doesn’t look like I’ve got any travel coming up soon.

In extended family news, things have been pretty busy over the past month or so. Corey & Mo went on their cruise – I hear they had a great time, and I’m sure they’ll have pictures to share soon. Matt, Sarah, and Samantha moved into their new place in Raymore. Larry had surgery that ended up being more complicated than expected, but he’s home and recovering well. Ben & Shirley moved to the Atriums and sold their house – I helped them with the mezuzah hanging at their very nice new apartment. Steve & Sali will be moving soon as well – the destination depends on where Steve’s new job takes them. Gabe continues to travel around the country performing, and Eli is awaiting news on research funding for a graduate school project.

Happy Turkey Day everyone! I started Thanksgiving in the traditional way – by heading to the Shawnee Mission East football field for the Turkey Bowl.

Discretion was the better part of valor this year. With the new baby arriving soon, I decided I couldn’t really risk an injury. So I brought Mikaela and Spike and my camera to the game, and enjoyed the beautiful weather from the sideline.

Mikaela enjoyed playing with Aunt Mo and with the other kids her age.  And Spike enjoyed hanging out in the sun (right up until she got into a little altercation with Steve Jones’ dogs – luckily, none of the dogs or their people were hurt). It’s almost time for Thanksgiving Phase II – Dinner and Grandma Marcia and Zaydie Larry’s house. Later, the Chiefs-Broncos game will be on TV.

Mikaela called Aunt Mo last night, to ask her if she would cut Mikaela’s hair while she’s in town for Thanksgiving (Mikaela explained that she wanted Mo to “put things in my hair”).  Mikaela proceeded to chat with Mo and Corey for a solid 15 minutes - possibly a new record for her.  Of course I could only hear one side of the conversation, but one thing in particular cracked me up.  Mikaela was explaining to Mo that she had a present to give to Mo for Chanukah – a rock!  Mikaela thought this present was very exciting, and (once I explained to Mikaela that Mo couldn’t SEE the rock through the phone) Mikaela described it to Mo in great detail.  “Its smooth and black and do you know it’s shaped like?  A heart!” (Well, sort of.  Maybe more like kidney shaped, but to a 4-year-old that’s probably close enough).  Then came the best gem of all.  Mikaela explained to Mo that when Mo came to visit, they could go “Chanukah Treating,” and people would give them LOTS of candy!

I guess Mikaela still has Halloween on the brain.

So I was catching up on some of the things that my TiVo had recorded for me while I was out of town and/or busily getting ready for the next trip last night, and imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon:

That’s right – circled in the bottom right-hand corner of this frame capture from last Saturday’s Saturday Night Live – that’s my sister-in-law Monique.  She was visiting her sister Briette in New Jersey, and they snagged tickets to the SNL taping courtesy of old Kansas City ComedySportz collegue Jason Sudeikis.  Thanks to the surprise visit to John C. Reilly’s monologue of Will Ferrell and his James Lipton impression, Mo briefly appeared on national television.  I guess adding “appeared on Saturday Night Live telecast” to her acting resume would now technically be true.

How thoughtful of my sisters-in-law to coordinate their birthdays so that I only have to remember one date

Sarah and Monique share their birthday with:

• Italian painter Caravaggio
• Broadcast industry legend William S. Paley
• Actress Brigitte Bardot
• Comedian Phil Hartman
• and Musician Moon Unit Zappa

Historical events on this date in history include:

• 1066 William the Conqueror invades England
• 1920 The Chicago “Black Sox” indicted for throwing the 1919 World Series
• 1944 “The Boys from Boise”, the first televised musical comedy, airs
• 1968 The Beatles “Hey Jude” hits #1 on the Billboard chart

I don’t know how I would put this into words, so I’ll just borrow Corey’s:

I lost a good friend this weekend.

The very difficult decision to have the veterenarian put Ted to sleep was made on Friday. He was 12 years old. He was having some recurring renal failure, and while I won’t chronicle the specific symptoms, suffice it to say he was suffering. It was with a heavy heart that the decision was made to end that suffering. I know in my heart it was the right thing to do. It doesn’t make it any easier, though.

I adopted Ted when he was just 10 weeks old. On a visit to Wayside Waifs I walked by a cage with these two adorable little puppies. It was Ted and his sister. The staff at Wayside allow you to take the dogs out of the cages to a little fenced in area to play with them for a while when making your decisions. Ted and his sister were brought out to the play area and while his sister cowered in the corner and was hesitant to interact, Ted came bounding over and instantly started playing with me. The decision was a no-brainer. I was done looking, and immediately dubbed him Ted, mostly because I thought it was funny.

When I first brought him home, he was tiny. He could almost sit in one of my hands. He couldn’t quite jump high enough to get on the couch. He was just this little fur-ball of energy. The folks at Wayside Waifs had labeled his kennel “chow mix” because they didn’t know his origin, but could tell there was some chow due to his partially purple tongue. Ted grew, but never got very big. A vet later concluded he was part chow, part golden retriever and part pomeranian. He never grew much bigger than a pomeranian, but looked so much like a retriever that most people assumed he was still a puppy even when he was surpassing 10 years old.

We had some really great times, going for walks on the Plaza, running in the leashes-off section of SM Park, and teaching him tricks. He could sit, lay, roll over, shake (with either paw), and “high five” upon command. He was even the inspiration for a sketch performed by Der Monkenpickle and portrayed on stage by my friend Ed Goodman. Ted and I moved from the apartment near Westport, to a house in Brookside, before moving to Denver. We lived in three different apartments in Colorado and played a lot with Emma, the Schwartz’ dog in their backyard. We later moved back to KC and lived in Lawrence for a year, too.

When I decided to move to Chicago, the hardest decision was to leave Ted behind with my parents in Overland Park. I knew it was better for him. He would have a backyard to run in and kids to play with him, while I would be living in a small apartment in the city, and keeping a crazy schedule. Plus, my parents loved him tremendously and took wonderful care of him. Even though I missed him, it was alright since I knew he was having a better life in Kansas than I could provide here in Chicago. Whenver I came home to visit, though, it was obvious that he still remembered me and clearly didn’t hold it against me. He was just always glad to see me.

We went through a lot together. He was there for me in good times and in hard times alike. He never judged me. He never doubted me. He never took me for granted. He just loved me unconditionally. I miss you, buddy. I’m glad you’re feeling better now. Goodbye Ted.

- Corey

Miriam handled the task of informing Mikaela. I don’t know the exact conversation – Miriam and Mikaela let me sleep in on Saturday morning. But when I woke up and went downstairs, Mikaela greeted me with a somber expression. I picked her up, and she looked me right in the eye and said, “Daddy, Ted’s dead. He’s not going to be at Grandma and Zaydie’s anymore. That’s sad.”

R.I.P. Ted. We’ll miss you.

But hey – at least it means that I’ve got a picture from the birthday party to post.

So Corey, to paraphrase our baby brother Matt, how’s it feel to be halfway to 40?

On your birthday throughout history:

In 1521 Magellan was killed by Phillipine natives

In 1667 John Milton sold the copyright to Paradise Lost

In 1956 Rocky Marciano retired as the undefeated heavyweight champion of the world.

In 1983 Nolan Ryan surpassed Walter Johnson’s career strikeout record.

You share your birthday with:

• Jack Klugman (Actor)
• Walter Lantz (Creator of Woody Woodpecker)
• Samuel Morse (Inventor of Morse Code)
• Enos “Country” Slaughter (Baseball Player)
• August Wilson (Playwright)

Corey and Monique have been casually looking for a new apartment since the lease on their current place expired a few months ago – they’ve been on a month-to-month lease since then. Last week, they found something even better than a new apartment – they found a condo right in their current Ravenswood/Lincoln Square neighborhood (that they LOVE). It’s only a couple of blocks from Annie’s place, and they were stunned and excited that the two bedroom version was in their price range. It’s in the process of rehabbing, so they can’t move in until late May (at the earliest). Corey sent me a few pictures from the model unit (some of the commentary is mine, and some is his):

Looking into the condo from the back door. That’s the kitchen off to the right. The front door is on the left just before the fridge. The washer/dryer are on the left just past the fridge. The bathroom and two bedrooms are down the hall on the right.

Entering the Kitchen. Those counters and cabinets are GORGEOUS!

Another view of the kitchen. The sink is in the right corner, it’s missing the faucet at the moment, but it’s the kind with the extending hose nozzle thingy.

The bathroom. Again, the faucet is not in yet, but you can see it’s the above counter sink (which Monique LOVES!). You can see the tub/shower. What you can’t see is that to the left out of frame is just a shower stall. There are two showers in this bathroom, and much more space than this picture shows.

Last pic is the living room. We get the ceiling fan, too. For this unit, that door is to the deck. In our unit, it will be an enclosed room, probably where Mo will do hair. We’re probably getting French doors tothat room, so it’ll look a little different.